There have been twelve economic downturns since the Great Depression that struck America in 1929. All but three of them began while a Republican was in the White House. Two of those three downturns were postwar adjustments while Harry Truman, a Democrat, was president. The third was in 1980, Jimmy Carter's last year in office. That was a six-month dip when the economy faded by 1 percent. All three recessions were relatively short and mild.
Now we are facing another drop in economic performance, and experts fear this one may be substantial. Some raise the question whether the presidential administration of Donald Trump did enough damage to the economy to plant the seed of the recession weed we now face.
Others insist the business cycle has a life of its own, and politicians have no influence on it. Also, there is the reality of the covid virus, which has struck hard at nearly all aspects of world society.
Nevertheless, those who believe the stock market is a barometer of the economy say we are facing a serious drop. The past few days have seen serious declines in Wall Street averages, and experts also note the return of "stagflation," a phenomenon where the economy is stagnant even as prices are inflated. Already, the first three months of this year have seen a dip of 1.4 percent in the economy. Two consecutive quarters of decline represents a recession. If the fiscal quarter ending in June also shows a drop, that will meet the definition of an economic recession.
As for the Power of Twelve, our resident numerologist points out that this is the twelfth recession since 1929, and the seeds of the current decline were planted when Donald Trump was in the White House. Call it coincidence, but he is the twelfth person to occupy the White House since the Great Depression was at its worst.
Now we are facing another drop in economic performance, and experts fear this one may be substantial. Some raise the question whether the presidential administration of Donald Trump did enough damage to the economy to plant the seed of the recession weed we now face.
Others insist the business cycle has a life of its own, and politicians have no influence on it. Also, there is the reality of the covid virus, which has struck hard at nearly all aspects of world society.
Nevertheless, those who believe the stock market is a barometer of the economy say we are facing a serious drop. The past few days have seen serious declines in Wall Street averages, and experts also note the return of "stagflation," a phenomenon where the economy is stagnant even as prices are inflated. Already, the first three months of this year have seen a dip of 1.4 percent in the economy. Two consecutive quarters of decline represents a recession. If the fiscal quarter ending in June also shows a drop, that will meet the definition of an economic recession.
As for the Power of Twelve, our resident numerologist points out that this is the twelfth recession since 1929, and the seeds of the current decline were planted when Donald Trump was in the White House. Call it coincidence, but he is the twelfth person to occupy the White House since the Great Depression was at its worst.
No comments:
Post a Comment